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Escape: Then take seven steps to happiness

As the dark clouds of war hang overhead, holidays to the Middle East, even parts of the Mediterranean, are being cancelled or reconsidered, and, guess what, everybody wants to come walking in Scotland. Well, not quite everybody, but hits to the tourist board’s hiking website (www.walkingwild.com) have doubled in the past few months, with February the busiest so far.

Colin Simpson, who runs the site from the Highlands and Islands tourist offices in Dingwall says Scotland is seen as a safe country. “I’ve just come back from Amsterdam promoting walking trips and people I met certainly saw holidays in Scotland as a safer bet than, say, going to London.

According to VisitScotland, walking is Scotland’s most important outdoor activity, generating £438m a year for the economy, which is a lot of bacon rolls and corn plasters.

So, if you fancy stretching your legs in advance of the full season and